Sen. Al Franken, seen here during a March 2017 Judiciary Committee hearing, has been accused by more than a half dozen women of inappropriate sexual conduct.(Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI, AFP/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. said he plans to resign after more than a half dozen women came forward over the past several weeks with allegations that he touched them improperly or made unwanted sexual advances. Franken also disputed some of the accusations and suggested he is being held to a different standard than President Trump.

"A couple months ago I felt we had entered an important moment in the history of this country," Franken said on the Senate floor. "We were finally beginning to listen to women about the way mens' actions affect them," he said. "Then the conversation turned to me," said Franken. "I was shocked” but trying to be respectful of the women's feelings, he said.

"It gave some people the false impression I was admitting to doing things that in fact I haven’t done," he said, insisting "some of the allegations against me simply are not true."

Nevertheless, Franken said he would resign over the next several weeks.

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Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. holds hands with his wife Franni Bryson as he leaves the Capitol after speaking on the Senate floor, Dec. 7, 2017, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Franken said he will resign from the Senate in coming weeks following a wave of sexual misconduct allegations and a collapse of support from his Democratic colleagues, a swift political fall for a once-rising Democratic star.
Andrew Harnik, AP

Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., holds hands with his wife Franni Bryson, as he leaves the Capitol after speaking on the Senate floor, Dec. 7, 2017, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Franken said he will resign from the Senate in coming weeks following a wave of sexual misconduct allegations and a collapse of support from his Democratic colleagues, a swift political fall for a once-rising Democratic star.
Andrew Harnik, AP

Sen. Al Franken leaves the U.S. Capitol with his wife Franni Bryson after speaking on the floor of the U.S. Senate Dec. 7, 2017 in Washington. Franken announced that he will be resigning from the U.S. Senate in the coming weeks following a barrage of allegations related to inappropriate conduct with women.
Win McNamee, Getty Images

Comedian Al Franken and sports commentator Leeann Tweeden perform a comic skit for service members during the USO Sergeant Major of the Army's 2006 Hope and Freedom Tour in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, on Dec. 15, 2006.
Staff Sgt. Patrick N. Moes, U.S. Army via AP

Senator Al Franken arrives for the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing the nomination of Christopher Wray's to be the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill, July 12, 2017.
MANDEL NGAN, AFP/Getty Images

Sportscaster Leeann Tweeden and then-comedian Al Franken meet and greet military members during an autograph signing session of the USO Sergeant Major of the Army's 2006 Hope and Freedom Tour in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, on Dec. 14, 2006.
Sgt. Thomas Day, U.S. Army via AP

Franken looks over his papers during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing on hurricane recovery efforts in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands on Capitol Hill on Nov. 14, 2017.
Mark Wilson, Getty Images

Franken directs a question to Neil Gorsuch during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Gorsuch's nomination to be an associate justice of the Supreme Court on March 21, 2017.
MICHAEL REYNOLDS, EPA

Franken walks off Air Force Once with President Obama, Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep. Betty McCollum at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Feb. 4, 2013. Obama was traveling to Minneapolis to speak about gun violence.
Brendan Smialowski, AFP/Getty Images

Franken talks with reporters outside his home in Minneapolis on April 13, 2009, after a court confirmed that he won the most votes in his 2008 Senate race against Republican Norm Coleman.
Craig Lassig, AP

Franken, as his wife, Franni, looks on, delivers a speech to the media in front of his home after the Minnesota state canvassing board certified the recount in his bid for the U.S. Senate on Jan. 5, 2009, in Minneapolis.
Jayme Halbritter, Getty Images

Many of the allegations pre-date Franken's Senate career, but the former comedian and Saturday Night Live cast member had already apologized and said he would "gladly cooperate" with a Senate Ethics Committee investigation of his behavior.

TV host Leeann Tweeden made the first allegations against Franken last month, and Franken's Democratic colleagues appeared to accept his apology and endorsement of the ethics probe. But as additional allegations emerged, Franken's support became tenuous, and on Wednesday dozens of Democratic senators — led by Democratic women — called for him to resign.

Franken became the second member of Congress to announce his resignation this week due to sexual harassment allegations. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., first elected to the House in 1964, stepped down Tuesday after several women accused him of harassment. Conyers has denied any misbehavior and said he was being denied due process.

In his speech, Franken noted that he had been prepared to submit to an ethics investigation and was defiant about his legacy. “I know in my heart that nothing I have done as a senator – nothing – has brought dishonor on this institution,” he said.

“I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact that I am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the Senate with the full support of his party,” said Franken. Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore has been accused of having inappropriate sexual contact with teenage girls when he was in his 30s; Moore has denied any wrongdoing.

Inside the Senate chamber, staffers lined the wall and some were dabbing tears from their eyes. As he left, about 20 of his Democratic colleagues approached him for hugs and handshakes. Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona was the only Republican who appeared to be in the chamber for the speech. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., who was among the female senators who called on him to resign, was also seen wiping her eyes.

The latest allegations against Franken, which came from Politico, was based on an unidentified former congressional aide who said Franken tried to forcibly kiss her after her boss had left a broadcast studio. As she was collecting her belongings, the woman said she turned around to find Franken coming at her. As she ducked, she says he told her: "It's my right as an entertainer."

Franken, who was deferential to and apologized for his conduct to his first accuser, Tweeden, had a different response to the latest account. In a statement, Franken initially said the idea he would say such a thing was "preposterous."

The state's Democratic governor, Mark Dayton, now needs to appoint a successor to serve until there is a special election to fill the seat through the end of Franken's term in 2020. In a Thursday statement, Dayton said he expects to announce his decision "in the next couple of days." Among the possible Democrats who could replace Franken are Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith and Reps. Keith Ellison and Ken Walz.

Shortly after the Politico story broke on Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called Franken and the two had several conversations throughout the day, according to a Senate aide who was not authorized to speak publicly.

The female Democratic senators had been talking among themselves prior to the latest revelations and decided that, if another accuser came forward, it would likely trigger their calls for resignation, the aide said. That process began within hours of the news report with a Facebook post by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York; and after seven Democratic women had come forward, a male senators began to join in. By the end of the day, a majority of the Democratic caucus in the Senate had called for Franken to step down.

Franken’s predicament is the product of a national conversation about sexual harassment that’s swept from Hollywood to Washington D.C. Congress has been under scrutiny for failing to oust lawmakers as quickly as corporate America has penalized male executives accused of harassment. Female lawmakers including Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., have led the charge, claiming that congressional rules and culture have protected harassers from public scrutiny and discouraged their victims from coming forward.

With their unified condemnation of Franken, Democrats are also seeking to draw a contrast with Republicans who may soon be joined in the Senate by Moore, the GOP candidate for the Alabama Senate seat vacated by Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions. While many Republicans, including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have said they believe Moore's accusers, this week Trump endorsed Moore and the Republican National Committee gave him a cash infusion ahead of a Dec. 12 special election.

Further, Trump himself stands accused of similar behavior by a dozen women who came forward during the 2016 campaign with tales of groping and forced sexual encounters.

Franken was elected to the Senate in 2008 by a 312-vote margin that was disputed in the courts for months; though he won reelection in 2014 by 10 percentage points. Franken was a writer and cast member for Saturday Night Live for two decades, and during his first Senate campaign he repeatedly had to address lewd comedy pieces he had written or performed in.

Once he got to the Senate, Franken kept a more serious profile, rarely stopping in the hallways to chat up reporters or providing comedic relief at hearings. More recently he had become an outspoken critic of Trump and a tough questioner of his administration officials, including delivering a sharp cross-examination of Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions about misleading comments Sessions made about a 2016 meeting with then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

When Democrats asked for U.S. Sen. Al Franken’s resignation the Minnesota Senator found support from unlikely people and now they are defending him as a victim of a puritanical witch hunt. Veuer's Maria Mercedes Galuppo (@mariamgaluppo) has more.
Buzz60

Professor David Schultz says Franken's resignation will add to an already busy 2018 election calendar in Minnesota. There will be races for U.S. Senate and House seats, governor, as well as other state offices, and legislative seats. (Dec. 6)
AP

Minnesota Sen. Al Franken says he'll resign in the coming weeks. He's repeatedly apologized as several women accused him of sexually inappropriate behavior, and as his support from fellow Democrats evaporated. (Dec. 7)
AP

A majority of Senate Democrats called for Minnesota Senator Al Franken to resign as allegations of sexual misconduct against the Minnesota lawmaker multiplied. Meanwhile, Senators were split on the Alabama Senate campaign of Roy Moore. (Dec. 6)
AP

Minnesota Senator Al Franken apologized to his supporters and vowed he would "take responsibility" for his mistakes. The Democratic senator is the first to be publicly accused of sexual assault.
USA TODAY

Several members of Congress spoke out against sexual assault Wednesday, saying it shouldn't be tolerated in the halls of Congress. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York said members of Congress should be held to a higher standard. (Dec. 6)
AP

ALLEGATIONS AGAINST U.S. SEN. AL FRANKEN
Franken: 'I've let a lot of people down' | 2:54

Minnesota Democratic Senator Al Franken says he knows he "let a lot of people down" - his constituents, colleagues and staff - in the face of sexually inappropriate behavior. He's vowing to regain their trust.
AP

Minnesota Senator Al Franken apologized Thursday after a Los Angeles radio anchor accused him of forcibly kissing her during a 2006 USO tour and of posing for a photo with his hands on her breasts as she slept. (Nov. 16)
AP